Pawn Sacrifice has sure taken a long time to get here. Back in 2010 David Fincher toyed with helming the film, based on Steven Knight’s script, and then Ed Zwick signed up to direct Tobey Maguire in the movie way back in the summer of 2012.

It shot in 2013 premieres at TIFF at the end of last year, but it’s only now a trailer has arrived before the September US release.

Here’s the synopsis: ‘In a gripping true story set during the height of the Cold War, American chess prodigy Bobby Fischer (Tobey Maguire) finds himself caught between two superpowers when he challenges the Soviet Empire. Also starring Liev Schreiber and Peter Sarsgaard, PAWN SACRIFICE chronicles Fischer’s terrifying struggles with genius and madness, and the rise and fall of a kid from Brooklyn who captured the imagination of the world.’ [Read more…]

The cast of Antoine Fuqua’s remake of The Magnificent Seven is nearly complete, with Denzel Washington, Chris Pratt, Ethan Hawke, Luke Grimes, Wagner Moura, Byung-hun Lee and Vincent D’Onofrio as the titular septet, and the likes of Haley Bennett and Matt Bomer joining.

What’s been slightly more difficult is getting the bad guys, as while Jason Momoa was supposed to be one of them, he’s now out, but Deadline reports that Peter Sarsgaard is now in final talks to play the main villain in the movie.

In this new takes on the classic tale, seven gunslingers are hired by a young woman (Bennett), to protect a town and it’s nearby gold mine from a wild west villain (Sarsgaard) and his henchmen, who have killed the woman’s husband (Bomer).

Night Moves got some good review at the Toronto and Venice film festivals last year, even if some weren’t sure about the ending. Now it’s moving towards release and a trailer has shown up online, even if it’s one with French subtitles.

The story centres on three extreme environmentalist who plan on blowing up a dam. Jesse Eisenberg is the leader of the trio, with Dakota Fanning as a rich young woman who finances the operation. Peter Sarsgaard is the bomb maker.

A May 30th US releases is set, while those in the UK aren’t likely to see it until the end of August. [Read more…]

How do you make a true-tale movie where the facts are in dispute? Well, you either pretend they’re not in dispute, or you try to find a way to suggest you don’t fully know what happened. Or, like Lovelace, you try to do both and trip over yourself in the process.

The film is a biopic of Linda Lovelace (Amanda Seyfried), the star of 70s porn chic hit Deep Throat, which by some reckonings is the most profitable movies ever made on the basis of budget versus its gross – however as much of the cash went through mob-controlled porn theatres, it’s impossible to know how much it actually made. [Read more…]

It’s been over a year since Edward Zwick signed up to direct Tobey Maguire in the Bobby Fischer biopic Pawn Sacrifice, but it’s only now that it’s moving forward with the news that Peter Sarsgaard and Liev Schreiber are in talks to star, according to THR.

The Cold War-era drama follows chess legend Bobby Fischer (Tobey Maguire), who became the youngest grand master in chess history. The main action of the film takes place in 1972 when, after an unprecedented winning streak, Fischer reached the world championship finals against the seemingly unbeatable Soviet master Boris Spassky (Schreiber). Peter Sarsgaard is playing a priest who becomes Fischer’s confidante during this period.

Steven Knight (Chef, Eastern Promises) wrote the screenplay. The project has been around for several year, as David Fincher flirted with directing March 2010. However it’s now due to go into production with Zwick helming next month.

Hunter (James Marsden) is fed up with dealing with his aging father, Frank (Frank Langella), and so rather than having to constantly drives miles to sort him out, he buys him a robot (voiced by Peter Sarsgaard), who’ll serve as a carer and butler. Frank doesn’t want this contraption, but eventually agrees to keep it while simultaneously plotting ways to get rid of it.

However Frank slowly realises the bot may have a use. Frank is a former jewel thief, and he recognises that the robot can be taught skills such as lock picking, which Frank can use in a scheme he cooks up to rejoin his former criminal profession. [Read more…]

Lovelace got a slightly mixed reception when it debuted at Sundance, but it certainly tells an interesting tale and has a great cast, including Amanda Seyfried, Peter Sarsgaard, Juno Temple, Sharon Stone, Chris Noth, Adam Brody, Hank Azaria, Wes Bentley, James Franco and Chloe Sevigny.

Now a new trailer and a UK quad poster have arrived, ahead on the film’s August release.

The film is a biopic of Linda Lovelace, who’s a fascinating figure far beyond the titilation of being the star of one of the best known porn films in history – Deep Throat. Initially appearing in hardcore (and even bestiality) movies, at first Lovelace seemed to revel in her status. However during her divorce from Chuck Traynor in the late 70s, she claimed that he was violent and had forced her into pornography at gunpoint (with some evidence to back her up).

While there have been some disagreements as to the extent Lovelace was a willing participant in her porn career, there seems little doubt that her marriage to Traynor was viscious and cruel. She then became an anti-pornography champion, speaking at public events and testifying at government hearings on pornography. However she later said she felt used by the anti-pornography movement, which got a lot mileage out of having Lovelace as a convert, but which never helped her out. She died in a car accident in 2002.

Jesse Eisenberg and Dakota Fanning are getting their eco-terrorist on, as Variety reports that they have joined the cast of Night Moves for Film Science and writer-director Kelly Reichardt (Meek’s Cutoff).

The story centres on three eco-terrorists who plan on blowing up a dam. Jesse Eisenberg will play the leader of the trio, and Dakota Fanning is up to be a rich young woman who finances the operation. Peter Sarsgaard, who joined the project last October, plays the bomb maker. Paul Dano was originally attached for Jesse Eisenberg’s role, although he is no longer involved in the project.

Kelly Reichardt will direct from her own screenplay. Production is scheduled to begin this October in Portland, Oregon.

Lovelace started shooting recently, but it appears it hasn’t quite finished casting, as Variety reports Chloë Sevigny has signed up to join the cast. She’s set to play Rebecca, a feminist journalist on freelance assignment for a men’s magazine, who sets out to find out who the real Linda Lovelace is.

Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman (Howl, The Celluloid Closet) are directing from an original screenplay by Andy Bellin (Trust). From the birth of the sexual revolution to the height of the feminist movement, Lovelace depicts the life of Linda Boreman who as ‘Linda Lovelace’ became the first erotic superstar in the 1970s. However Linda later renounced porn and claimed her time in the industry was virtual slavery due to her domineering husband.

Earlier this year it was reported that James Franco was in talks to play the male lead of Chuck Traynor in the Linda Lovelace biopic, Lovelace. However a deal never came together and the part went to Peter Sarsgard instead. However Franco may still pop up and he’s now in talks for a cameo role as Hugh Hefner, reuniting him with the directors of Howl, Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman.

Amanda Seyfried is playing the title role of porn actress Linda Lovelace, star of the infamous Deep Throat, who later became a noted anti-porn advocate. James Franco’s involvement will be limited, with only one scene where Hugh Hefner invites Lovelace and Traynor to the Playboy mansion for a screening of Deep Throat

Variety also reports that Hank Azaria, Bobby Cannavale, Chris Noth and Robert Patrick have joined the film. Hank Azaria will play Deep Throat director Jerry Damiano, Bobby Cannavale and Chris Noth will be Deep Throat financiers Butchie Peraino and Anthony Romano, and Robert Patrick will portray Linda’s father, John. They join recently announced cast members Wes Bentley, Sharon Stone and Juno Temple.